To Give Up My Wings
by Aneko.Inoue
Summary: Sequel to Spread My Wings and Fly. A year has gone by since Chouko was killed and now she has the chance to be resurrected, but for a price. Will she choose to be revived and fight against her friends or will she choose to stay a wandering soul forever?
1. Prologue

Prologue

"Pai, is she almost ready?" I asked standing next to him. There was a large tube standing in front of us. It was filled with a special liquid and contained something very precious to me.

"Yes, I believe that she's almost ready." Pai replied typing something into the machine that was attached to the tube. He stepped back when he finished typing. "I'll leave you alone with her for a while."

He teleported away and I walked up to the tube and placed my hand on the cool glass. I stared at the lifeless body floating inside the middle of the tube.

"Kishu…" came a familiar voice behind me. I turned around to see the one I had worked so hard to revive.

"It's almost ready, just a little longer Chou." I said.

She smiled at me and caressed my cheek. "Kishu, you've worked so hard just so that we could be together." She said. "Thank you,"

Pai POV

"Thank you," Chouko said caressing Kishu's cheek.

I turned to Kira. "Are you sure that this is a good idea? To let him revive one of our enemies?"

"It'll be fine. She won't be our enemy if all goes according to plan." She replied with a smile. "Soon our greatest ally shall be awakened."


	2. The Awakening

It was almost a year after Chouko sacrificed herself to save me and the world, and none of us have forgotten what she did to save us. I was cleaning tables when Keiichiro walked out of the kitchen with a plate of food.

"Is that for Ryou?" I asked walking over to him.

"Yeah, he still won't come out of his room." He said glancing up the stairs.

"What Chouko did wasn't his fault." I said. "Here, why don't I bring that to him?"

Keiichiro nodded and handed me the plate. I walked upstairs to Ryou's room. That was something I forgot to mention, ever since Chouko died, Ryou wouldn't come out of his room.

_Flashback1 week after Chouko's death_

"_Ryou come on, open up!" I said banging on his door. He didn't answer. "Ryou, what happened—what Chouko did was her choice, there was nothing you could've done to stop her!"_

_Still he didn't answer. "Listen, things happen for a reason, it doesn't matter whether we want them to happen or not, they just do!"_

_End Flashback_

I knocked on the door to Ryou's room. No answer. I put the plate on the floor next to the door and headed back downstairs. I stopped halfway down the stairs and ran back to Ryou's room.

"Ryou, open up! Please!" I said knocking on the door. "Please, Ryou, just open the door!" I started banging on the door as tears formed in my eyes.

I kept banging on the door for a few minutes before falling to my knees, tears streaming down my face, my fists still on the door. "Please Ryou, just open up and come out for a minute." I cried. "Please… YOU'RE JUST KILLING YOURSELF BY DOING THIS!" I screamed with another bang on the door. "Locking yourself up in your room isn't going to bring Chouko back! I can't stand it! I can't stand you blaming yourself! It's… it's not fair! IT WAS MY FAULT THAT SHE DIED! _I_ SHOULD BE THE ONE LOCKING MYSELF UP IN MY ROOM!"

I sat there crying for a few minutes before forcing myself to get up, wipe off my face, and go back downstairs. When I passed by the calendar hanging up next to the kitchen door, I stopped.

"Is something wrong Ichigo?" Lettuce asked walking over to me.

"It's tomorrow…" I said.

"What's tomorrow?" she asked looking at the calendar. "There's nothing written there."

"It's tomorrow…" I repeated. "…it's been a year already."

She instantly knew what I was talking about. "Oh, that. I can't believe it's been a year since… since it happened." She said softly.

I heard a crash behind me and turned to see that Keiichiro had dropped a plate that he was drying. "Oh, sorry about that." He said as he picked it up.

"Poor Keiichiro." I said as we went back to work. "Chouko was his family. Aside from Ryou, he was the last to recover from shock."

"Yeah, I feel bad for him." Lettuce said. "We should do something for him."

"I understand what you're saying Lettuce… but what can we do? I mean, I don't think having a party to celebrate the death of his niece is going to cheer him up." I said.

"I wasn't thinking about a party, but what about if we went to visit her grave?"

I thought about it for a minute. It sounded like a good idea, except that I was pretty sure that he visited her grave often. But maybe it would be nice if we all went together and had a picnic there.

"Okay, let's do it!" I said. "Let's all meet up together tomorrow."

The Next Day

Masaya and I were standing at the entrance to the café waiting for everyone else to get there. We were both wearing all black to show respect to Chouko and I was carrying a picnic basket that I had prepared last night.

"Ah, you're already here." Keiichiro said walking out of the café and over to us. He was also wearing all black.

"Where's Ryou?" I asked.

"He refused to come out of his room." Keiichiro replied.

"Oh, I see…" I said glancing up at Ryou's window. His curtain was drawn so I couldn't see inside. My heart ached to see him acting this way. But I guess it's better than when he found out Chouko died…

_Flashback_

_There were smashes coming from Ryou's room. We just told him what had happened and he ran up to his room and locked it. We tried to calm him down, but to no avail._

"_It's not fair!" Ryou yelled. "It's—not—fair! This isn't how things were supposed to end up!"_

_We sat downstairs. Pudding was bawling her eyes out, Mint was sitting alone crying silently, Lettuce was sitting at a table with her face buried in her arms, and Zakuro, who I'd never seen cry before, was wiping her face off with a handkerchief._

"_Why... why did things have to end up this way?" Ryou yelled from upstairs. He seemed to be expressing how we all felt. "How could she leave us like that!?" there was another smash from upstairs._

_End Flashback_

Zakuro, Lettuce, Mint, and Pudding all walked over wearing all black. Mint was even carrying flowers to place on the grave.

"Come on everybody, let's go." I said.

Kishu POV

I was standing in front of the tube while Pai typed something into the machine attached to it.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Ready." I replied.

"It's finally time." Kira said behind Pai. "It is finally time…"

The liquid slowly drained out of the tube and then the tube started to melt into the floor. The body fell and I caught it in my arms. Chouko's soul appeared in front of me and looked worried.

"Don't worry." I reassured her. "You'll be fine."

She nodded and slowly merged with the body. Her eyes slowly opened up and she looked up at me. Chouko's body had been awakened once again.


	3. The Blood Pact

Chapter 2: The Blood Pact

I watched as everyone walked toward Chouko's grave. I would've gone with them if I thought I could bear it. Thing is, I still couldn't stop blaming myself for what happened to Chouko a year ago.

_Flashback_

_Chouko flew down and slapped me hard across the face. "Open your eyes!" she yelled at me. "It's my choice to put myself in danger or not! Ichigo's in trouble up there and I'm the only one that can help her! I don't know how, but I just get the feeling that I'm supposed to go up there and help her. I'm fourteen years old and I can take care of myself! Besides, my uncle doesn't really care about me, and neither do you!"_

_End Flashback_

The way she said that last part… how could she think like that? Keiichiro took her in because she's family and he loved her. Sure I teased her, but still I… I loved her too. She was more than just family to me… but I never got the chance to tell her.

I sat down on the bed and Ichigo's words kept echoing in my head, _"When you've fought all your fights, and loved the ones you love, then you can ­leave the world with no regrets, and finally rest in peace."_ What did she mean? I understood what she was saying, but what did she mean by _'finally rest in peace'_?

Kishu POV

Chouko slowly got up and steadied herself on her feet. I stood up behind her to make sure she didn't fall.

"It feels so much better to be back in a body." She said softly, examining her hands. She closed her eyes and her wings folded out of the mark on her back. She noticed that the collar I gave her was still around her neck and she turned to me. "Thank you so much Kishu!"

"Come on Chouko, let's get you dressed." Kira said walking forward and placing an arm around Chouko's shoulders and leading her into another room.

"Kishu, you do realize that it's not going to be like before, right?" Pai asked.

"Yeah, I know." I replied sadly. "But at least she's back."

"You don't get it, do you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Once a person dies, they can never completely rejoin the living." He said. He sounded mutual, but I could see that he was a little sad too. Why should he be sad? And what is he talking about, _never completely rejoin the living_?

Chouko POV

Kira led me into another room and handed me a bundle of clothes. It was a small yellowish one-strapped top and a short red skirt that wrapped around my waist and had two striped ribbons at the back. I put them on and noticed that I now looked like them; at least what I was wearing was similar to theirs.

"There, that's much better now, isn't it?" Kira said walking over to me and placing silver bracelets on my wrists. "Now, there's something we must discuss."

"What?" I asked as we walked back to the others.

"Your price." She replied.

"My price? What are you talking about?" I asked.

"Your price for us bringing you back." Kira answered. "You didn't think we were just going to bring you back and then let you turn on us now, did you?"

She smiled at me wickedly, showing one of her fangs at the corner of her mouth. I knew that there was something I had to do for them as thanks, but the way she said it made a shiver run down my spine.

"I'm not asking for anything big, just your word that you won't turn on us." Kira said. She snapped her fingers and a piece of paper appeared in front of me, floating in midair. I waited for a pen or something to appear, but it didn't.

"Um, what am I supposed to do with this?" I asked.

"Sign it." She said with her wicked smile.

"With what? There's nothing to sign with." I said.

"It's a blood pact Chouko," Kishu said. "You have to sign it with your blood."

_My blood...? How am I supposed to sign with my blood?_

"H-Here," Kishu said holding out a hand. He lifted up my ­hand and one of his swords appeared in his other hand. I bit my lip as he ran the sword across my hand and blood fell on the piece of paper.

The instant my blood hit the paper, my wings and collar began to glow blood-red. When it died down, my wings were still the same color, except with a tinge of blood-red, and the collar that Kishu had given me was completely blood-red.

"What just happened?" I asked as Kishu ran the sword through his own hand and his blood dripped onto the paper. His wristbands began glowing just like my wings and collar did and then they were blood-red.

"You just signed the blood pact." Kira said as the paper flew over to her and she took out her own dagger and ran it through her hand. Her blood dripped onto the paper, except nothing on her glowed. She looked up at us satisfied. "Now I know I can trust you."

I gave her a quizzical look. "I'm not quite sure I get it." I said.

"Oh don't worry, you will soon enough." She said.

"Can I go and see the others?" I asked turning to Kishu.

"I'm not quite sure that that's a good idea Chouko…" he began, but I grabbed onto the front of his shirt.

"Please Kishu; I need to see them again. Especially my uncle… I need to apologize to them properly." I begged.

He smiled at me and took my hand. "Alright, but just for a while." He said.

Kira POV

"Are you sure that we should let them do this? Giving away the fact that she was resurrected… they might try to bring her back to their side." Pai said worried.

"Don't worry." I reassured him, watching as the wound in my hand quickly healed itself. "She's made the blood pact, after all. The moment she tries to turn against us… she'll realize what she's agreed to."

Chouko POV

We teleported to earth and landed in the park. I saw the café and began running toward it, but Kishu grabbed my wrist. "Wait a second, don't you think you should get rid of your wings first?" he said.

"Oh, right!" I said, contracting my wings into my back. "Come on!"

I ran toward the café and burst through the door, but nobody was there. I looked at the sign on the door. "Closed for today"

I shrugged. I ran up the stairs and opened the door to my bedroom. There was a layer of dust on everything, but I didn't care. I flopped down onto the bed, causing a cloud of dust to float around me. I noticed something sitting on the dresser that didn't have a speck of dust on it.

I walked over to the dresser and my heart skipped a beat. I lifted the picture off the dresser. It was the picture I had yelled at Kishu for touching… the only picture I had left of my family.

"Achoo!" I sneezed. "Man, there's so much dust in here."

I walked over to the window and opened it. I took a breath of fresh air.

"Chouko…?"

I turned around to see Ryou standing in the doorway. His skin was pale and his hair was a mess. I could tell that he hadn't been out in a while and it worried me. he stared at me with disbelief. He staggered and grabbed onto the wall.

"I've got to be imagining this." He mumbled to himself. "She's gone… she's gone…"

His voice was so weak that I could hardly hear him or understand him.

I went over to him and caressed his cheek. "No, you're not imagining this." I said as his eyes widened. "I'm real… and I'm back."


	4. Hidden Return

Chapter 3: The Way to Lose My Wings

"Chouko…? But how—what—but you were—" Ryou stuttered. I giggled.

"Its okay, Kishu and I were just…" I turned around but Kishu wasn't there.

"Ryou, we're back!" Ichigo called from downstairs.

"Come on, the other's will want to see you!" Ryou said grabbing my hand, but I pulled it back.

"I'll introduce myself to them in a minute. But I need to help you get cleaned up first." I said taking him back into his room. I sat him down on the bed and picked up a brush. I sat down on the bed behind him and started brushing his hair.

"You know, you really startled me." I said as I brushed his hair gently. "What have you been doing since I left? I mean your skin is so pale, and you're a complete mess."

He didn't answer, but I didn't expect him to. When I finished brushing his hair I made him take a bath. I looked out the window when he got out and changed.

"You know, I really missed you." I said, still looking out the window. "I was always thinking of how I could've apologized to you better. I mean, I didn't really mean to leave the way I did…"

He walked over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder. I looked up at him and smiled.

"But I guess that really doesn't matter now, does it?" I said. "Come on, I want to say hi to the others."

We walked downstairs and ran into Ichigo. She looked at Ryou and her eyes widened.

"Ryou! You finally came out of your room!" she cried. "Are you feeling bet—" She didn't seem to notice me at first, but then her gaze drifted in my direction and her eyes, if possible, widened even more.

She blinked and rubbed her eyes and realized that I wasn't her imagination.

"Chouko! You're alive!? But how—we just—" she stuttered. "We buried you a year ago, we saw you leave with your mother! How can you be alive!?"

"I—" I began, but Kishu appeared in front of me and grabbed my hand.  
"Chouko, we've got to go." He said, teleporting us back to Kira.

"What's going on? I was just trying to let my friends know that I was back!" I said.

"Oh don't worry, I won't keep you for long, but there's something I forgot to mention to you earlier." Kira said. "If you tell those friends of yours that I resurrected you, then they won't trust you anymore. They'll think that you're on our side. So I suggest that you say that Kishu revived you out of love. That way they won't loose their trust in you."

"Is that all?" I asked.

"Yes, you may go back now." Kira said waving her hand.

Ichigo POV

"But I'm serious Keiichiro, I saw Chouko! She was standing right there!" I said, pointing to the spot where Chouko had vanished a moment ago. "Ask Ryou! He came out of his room and was coming downstairs with her!"

"Ichigo, I know you miss Chouko, but she's dead. She's not coming back. It's impossible." Keiichiro said.

"No it's not! She was here! I saw here with my own eyes!" I protested.

"Ichigo, we're all upset by losing Chouko!" Lettuce said. "But think about it, coming back to life after an entire year?"

"I'm not making this up!" I yelled. "You've got to belie—" Mint slapped me across the face.

"Open your eyes Ichigo!" she yelled, her eyes wet with tears. "We all miss her, and sure, we all want her back, but that doesn't mean you can go around trying to make us think that she's back! She's dead, she's been gone for a year and she's never coming back!"

"Look Ichigo, it's been a long day, why don't you go home and rest." Keiichiro said gently patting my shoulder.

I sighed. "Maybe you're right. I'll just go back home."

I walked out of the café and started heading home. _I know I saw her! I just know that that was her! Before they were just faint images, but this was the real thing! Chouko really was brought back! Oh, if only Keiichiro would listen to me..._ _but then again... I really do miss her, so maybe it was just my imagination..._

I froze as a shiver ran up my spine. Something was calling me. I ran to where my heart told me to go.

Chouko POV

I stood up in the cherry blossom tree above my grave. I saw that the girls had left flowers on top of the tombstone, thinking I was still dead. _At least they never forgot about me, even when I was dead._ I said to myself.

Kishu flew down beside me and wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me close to him. I rested my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes.

"Kishu, I'm glad you brought me back." I said softly. "Even though you could all see my soul, it just wasn't the same."

"I know, and I'm sorry it took so long." He said. "But all we had was some of your hair. Luckily that was enough to clone your body."

Just then Ichigo appeared underneath us. She didn't look up at us, but knelt down at the grave.

"Was it you that was calling me Chouko?" she asked, looking up at me.

I flew down to her and wrapped my arms around her neck. She was shocked at first, but then wrapped her arms around me too.

"I'm so sorry." I whispered in her ear. I took a step back. "I didn't mean to leave you like that."

She shook her head. "I'm the one who should be apologizing." She said. "If it wasn't for me… you wouldn't have had to save me and sacrifice yourself in the process."

Tears formed in her eyes and started falling down her face. I wrapped my arms around her again and she started crying into my shoulder. Kishu flew down behind me and patted my shoulder.

"Chouko, we have to go. Kira's calling us back." He said softly into my ear.

"Okay." I said. "Ichigo, we have to go now, but I'll be back soon."

She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and nodded. "Okay, well, don't take too long." She said.

Kishu and flew up into the sky and teleported back to Kira for the second time.

"Yes Kira?" I asked.

"You never did figure out how to fully use your power, did you?" she asked walking over to me.

"Um, what do you mean? I've mastered how to use the staff." I said, summoning it to my hands.

"No, no, not that." She said waving her hand. I made the spear disappear and she placed her hands on my shoulders. "I mean your _true_ power."

"What do you mean, _true_ power?" I asked.

She sighed and started walking around me in circles. "You see, the Mew Aqua Chou, which is you, can use their powers with just their bare hands." She said. "And when they use their hands to use their powers, it doubles their attack's strength."

I looked down at my hands. _Was she serious? Could I really just use my hands and not have to use the spear all the time?_

"Of course, there is a catch." Kira said. "When they use their… secret weapon, as I like to call it, it uses up an enormous amount of their strength. Meaning, that they will have to recover before being able to attack again; but if you use the staff, your attacks are strong, yes, but it also helps keep your strength in check so that you don't have to wait to attack again."

"So if Chouko uses her hands to attack, then she'll be more powerful?" Kishu asked.

"Precisely, but like I said, she'll need to recover before being able to attack again." Kira answered. "Her body will go into a kind of, _preservative_ or _protective_ mode and she will transform into a butterfly until her strength is recovered. Of course, I don't think that she'd transform instantly, I believe that she'd only transform if she was in danger of dying."

"Amazing! I didn't know that I was capable of something like that." I said. "So, what do we do now?"

Kira smiled wickedly, showing one of her fangs. "We are to attack the Mew Mews… and destroy them. Especially… Mew Ichigo."

"Wait a second… I have to kill my friends?!" I said. "There's no way I'm gonna do that!"

I turned to walk away, but after a few steps my collar began to glow and it started to shrink around my neck, making it hard for me to breathe. I fell to my knees, trying to pry the collar off. It seemed that the more I tried to pull it off, the tighter it got around my neck.

"Fine! I'll do it!" I said. And then the collar went back to normal and I was able to breathe again. I turned to Kira. "What the hell was that?!"

"That's what happens when you make a blood pact." Kira replied with a smirk. "If you do anything against the pact, you'll suffer until you die."

"That's not a fair agreement!" I protested.

"All's fair in love and war." She said. She glanced at Kishu and then back at me. "And it seems that this is a little bit of both. Oh, and did I mention that since your wings were part of the pact that if they turn blood-red and you try to break the blood pact… you will lose your wings forever!"


	5. Everything Changes

Chouko POV

I stood there, frozen by Kira's words. She smiled and passed me. When she reached me, she placed her hand on my shoulder. "You'd better make the choice now… or else you'll suffer from more than just pain and lose something more than just your new body." She whispered before walking away.

When she teleported away, I fell to my knees and Kishu knelt down beside me.

"Chouko, what's wrong?" he asked.

"Lose my wings…? Lose more than my body…? Suffer from more than just pain…?" I said blankly. "What does she mean? What's going to happen to me?"

"Nothing's going to happen to you, I promise." Kishu said.

I looked up and him and couldn't help but smile. "Thank you Kishu, for everything." I said before giving him a kiss.

Ichigo POV

I laid down on the bed and thought about what Chouko had said. She looked the same and sounded the same, but there was just something about her that seemed… different, like she was changed somehow.

_Chouko's different from before._ I thought. _But what... what about her is different? I can't tell!_

I groaned and pulled the pillow over my head, trying to think.

_Flashback _

"_I see that you resemble your mother extremely well." Deep Blue said. . "I guess it's true about your kind, you can't resist the urge to save someone's life, even if it means sacrificing your own._ _Not that it matters… you'll soon be dead and I'll have what I want."_

"_How do you know about my mother?" Chouko asked._

"_How did I know her? I killed her! I sent Kishu out to kill her and her family so that I could finally have what I wanted." He laughed._

"_You're lying!" Chouko screamed, trying to hold back her tears. "Kishu wouldn't have done that!"_

_She ran toward him and raised her spear, ready to attack, when Kishu appeared between them. Chouko dropped her spear and fell to the ground, crying._

"_Chouko, what's wrong?" Kishu asked, bending down next to her. "What happened?"_

"_Get away from me!" She said, standing up and backing away from him. _

"_I'll just let you two settle things out…" Deep Blue said. "… while I destroy this Mew Mew."_

_End Flashback_

"Maybe when she found out that Kishu killed her family it broke her heart and she decided to change." I reasoned. "No, that wouldn't make any sense. Chouko is still practically the same person… what am I overlooking?"

I sighed and told myself that it was probably just my imagination and that Chouko wasn't changed at all. I closed my eyes and an image of Chouko from before she died flashed in my head. Just then, an image of her from today flashed in my head too. My eyes flashed open and I realized what I had overlooked.

Ryou POV

I stood at the window in my room holding the picture of Chouko and her family. Chouko was hanging onto her brother's neck and they were both laughing. Their parents were smiling behind them. Images of Chouko flashed in my head. She'd been on an emotional roller coaster ever since she came here, maybe even before that. She had said something about it being her fault that her parents died, that she hadn't been a perfect angel. What did she mean?

There was a knock at my door and I saw Zakuro walk in. She closed the door behind her and looked up at me.

"Ryou is Chouko back?" she asked.

"Yeah, she's back. I guess that everyone can't handle the news since it's been so long." I said.

"It's because she was Keiichiro's niece…" Zakuro said. I looked up at her curiously as she walked over to the window and gazed up at the sky.

"What do you mean Zakuro?" I asked.

"Think about it." She said, still looking out the window. "His sister was killed, along with his brother-in-law and his nephew. Chouko was all he had left. It probably tore him apart to know that she willingly gave up her life."

I thought about what she said and knew that she was right. Keiichiro had lost all the family he had.

"That explains why he didn't want to believe me when I said that Chouko was back." I said.

"Exactly. If you lost all the family you had and you were just starting to get over it, you wouldn't want to know that they're back, would you?" Zakuro said.

"You're right. I shouldn't have let Ichigo try to push him into believing her." I said feeling guilty. "Maybe I should go talk to him—"

"No, don't make it harder for him to understand." Zakuro said turning to me. "Chouko will go to him herself and tell him that she's back. I'm sure that if we just try to convince him, it'll be that much harder for him when she leaves."

"What do you mean, leave? She's alive again, the only way she's going to leave is if she dies again, and I doubt that'll happen soon." I said.

"Listen to me." Zakuro said, her eyes filled with worry. "I know that you are smart and everything, but you still haven't realized it."

"Realized what?"

"That a soul brought back from the dead can never truly be happy if they rejoin the living!" Zakuro yelled. For the first time since Chouko's death, I saw tears in Zakuro's eyes. "Once a person dies and accepts it, they leave the world of the living and aren't supposed to return. If they do return to the world of the living, they feel sad because they know that they cannot stay living for long. Whatever body they are in, even if it is another person's body, they yearn to go back to the land of the dead so that they can watch over us and that makes them happier than living again."

She buried her face in her hands and started crying. I didn't know what to do, since I was still shocked that Zakuro was crying for the first time. At least, the first time I saw her crying.

"Did something like that happen to you?" I asked.

"Someone very important to me died and my parents tried everything to bring them back." She cried, her voice muffled by her hands. "I couldn't take it anymore, so I left and came here." She wiped off her tears. "Sorry, I haven't cried in a while. I try not to though."

"It's okay." I said. "It's good to cry once in a while."

"Well, I'd better get going." She said. "I'll see you on Monday."

"See ya." I said as she left.

Something she said made me realize that I had been selfish since Chouko's death. I had locked myself up; trying to pretend that what had happened was just my imagination. But every day I would realize that it had happened and there was nothing I could do about it. Yet, I was never able to accept the fact that Chouko had died, it was just too hard… especially since I had never gotten the chance to tell her that she was more to me than a sister…

The Next Day-Back at Chouko's Room-ChoukoPOV

I woke up and saw that Kishu was still fast asleep beside me. I smiled and gently shook his shoulder.

"Kishu… are you awake?" I asked, but he didn't move.

I laughed quietly and slid out of the bed. I walked over to the bathroom and took a shower. When I finished, I wrapped a towel around me and walked back out. Kishu was just waking up as I came out and I sat down on the bed beside him.

"Good morning." He said sleepily.

"Good morning, sleep well?" I asked.

"Yeah, I haven't had a night like that in so long." He sighed.

"Aw, well, I'm sorry." I said giving him a kiss. "But at least I'm back. Come on, you'd better get ready."

He got up and took a shower while I got dressed. After he got dressed we teleported to the park to do what Kira had told us to do. Pai and Taruto teleported to us and each had a predicite in their hand.

"Ready Chou?" Kishu asked with a predicite in his own hand.

I nodded and they threw the predicites into a nearby dog, cat, and spider. The infested animals grew larger and became Kimera Animas. I smiled and pulled out my pendant.

"Mew Chouko… DARK METAMORIPHOSIS!" I yelled.

I transformed differently than I had before. The clothes that Kira had given me had become my outfit and instead of being surrounded in a bright light, I was surrounded in a black aura. I could feel my clothes changing into my new outfit and I felt my wings sprout out of my back.

"Chouko Spear!" I yelled, summoning my spear into my hands.

"Now all we have to do is wait." Kishu said.

We didn't have to wait long, a minute later the Mew Mews appeared below us. Kishu flew in front of me to hide me from them.

"What are you guys up to this time?" Mint asked him.

"Why don't you find out for yourself?" Taruto asked. "Go Kimera Animas!"

The three Kimera Animas began attacking the Mew Mews. I had the urge to fight the Mew Mews too, but Kishu held me back.

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked.

"What do you think? I'm gonna go fight the Mew Mews." I said. _What am I saying? The Mew Mews are my friends... why do I want to fight them?_

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Kira asked teleporting behind Kishu. She waved him away and flew over to me. She grabbed my chin and lifted my face up to meet hers. "You do realize that if you choose to fight them that it means you'll be working for me from now on. Is that really what you want?"

I gazed into her purple eyes and knew what I had to do. "Well, I don't have a choice now, do I?" I said.

Kira smiled and released my chin. "Very well, Kishu, go fight the Mew Mews! I need to give our little butterfly here something."

Kishu flew off to fight the Mew Mews and Kira held her hand out in front of her. A dark sphere emerged from her hand and popped like a bubble revealing a small black kitten with blood-red devil wings. It transformed into a small barrette and went in my hair.

"What's this for?" I asked.

"It's a way for me to keep in touch with you." She replied.

"Chouko?!" Ichigo yelled from below. I looked down at her and noticed that the other Mew Mews hadn't noticed me. I flew down a few feet in front of her, but didn't look up at her. "Chouko, what's going on? I thought you weren't evil anymore."

"I'm sorry Ichigo, but I don't have a choice…" I said raising my spear. "Thousand Devil Wing Strike!"

A thousand shadow blades flew out of my spear and toward Ichigo. She didn't have enough time to dodge and was hit with multiple blows. I didn't understand it, but something inside of me enjoyed attacking Ichigo. When I looked up at her, I saw that her body was covered in cuts and she was bleeding badly, but she didn't give in.

"Why are you doing this?" she asked. "I thought you were our friend!"

"I thought we were too…" I said raising my spear again. "But I guess we were both wrong…"

Just then, my spear began to glow and transformed into a sword. I gazed at it as the blade became silver and the hilt sprouted black butterfly wings.

"I'm sorry Ichigo… but I don't have another choice." I raised my sword, but something wrapped around the blade, making it impossible for me to attack. I turned around to see Zakuro's whip around my sword. "What are you doing Zakuro?! Let me go!" I yelled.

"No! You need to think about what you're doing Chouko!" she yelled back.

I turned away from her. "I can't… I don't have a choice…" I said.

"Yes you do!" she said walking up to me. She put her arms on my shoulders. "You have the choice to do what you know is right!"

"I can't!" I yelled at her. "If I don't do what Kira says I'll—I'll… I'LL DIE!!"

She took a step back and released my sword. I raised it as tears filled my eyes. "Forgive me… SHADOW STRIKE!" a shadow blade flew out of my sword and attacked Zakuro, knocking her to the ground. I turned around to Ichigo. "SHADOW—"

Masaya, as the Blue Knight, had run up at me out of nowhere and knocked my sword out of my hand. My sword flew and pierced a nearby tree. I glared at Masaya.

"You're going to pay for that!" I said, but he just merely threw me aside with his hands.

He grazed my side with his sword and I grabbed it with my hand to stop it from bleeding too much.

"I was born to protect Ichigo, even from you." He said, bracing himself for another attack.

"Yeah, yeah, sing a new song, why don't cha?" I said raising my free hand.

Kishu turned around and saw me. "Chouko, what are you doing?" he yelled.

"I'm gonna teach this guy a lesson!" I replied as a sphere of black light began to form in my hand.

"Don't do it Chou, you know what'll happen!" Kishu warned again.

"I'm gonna have to take that chance. SHADOW OF DEATH!" I yelled. The sphere of light flew from my hand and shot through Masaya's chest. He fell to the ground and transformed back to normal.

"MASAYA!" Ichigo screamed running over to him. "Masaya, wake up!"

"Don't worry about him. He's not dead… yet." I said.

She turned to me, her eyes were like daggers. "Why would you do this? I thought you were our friend! We trusted you!" tears filled her eyes and she looked away from me.

My heart ached to see Ichigo like this, yet I knew that our friendship had ended the moment I was revived. I raised my hand again, but Kishu teleported in front of me and grabbed my hand.

"Stop… that's enough." He said softly. I noticed that his voice seemed harder than it usually did when he talked to me. _Does he still have feelings for Ichigo even though he's chosen me?_

"Kishu, what are you doing?" I asked angrily. "I have to do what Kira says or else I'll die! Are you trying to get me killed?!"

"SHUT UP!" Kishu yelled. I froze, stunned by his words. In all the time we'd been together, I'd never seen him yell before… at least, not at me. "Get a hold of yourself Chou! This isn't like you… you've never been so… so cold before. What's happening to you?"

I looked into his golden eyes and knew that he was right. I had been so shocked by Kira's words that I had changed. She had found my weak point and used it to turn me against my friends.

I looked up at her, not even caring what would happen if I broke the blood pact. Anything to have my friends forgive me. "SHADOW OF DEATH!" I yelled, shooting another black sphere toward Kira. I shot two more attacks at her before falling to my knees. The collar around my neck was shrinking again, and I was beginning to feel dizzy. The last thing I remember was Ryou running toward me before I was knocked out.


	6. One Chance Can Confuse the Heart

Ryou POV

I looked outside my window to see the Mew Mews fighting against three Kimera Animas. I watched as they destroyed two of them and then I noticed that Ichigo was getting attacked. I couldn't believe it when I saw that Chouko was the one doing it. I quickly climbed out my window and ran toward her.

_This can't be true... after everything that's happened... she's siding with the enemy?!_

She shot a few spheres of black light toward something in the sky before fainting. I knelt down beside her and shook her shoulder.

"Chouko… Chouko wake up!" I said.

"Don't worry… she's not dead." Kishu said. "Chou wouldn't die so easily. I'll leave her with you, for now… just take good care of her." And with that, he teleported away with his comrades.

I picked Chouko up and carried her back to the café. I laid her down in my bed and locked the door. I quickly cleaned up the wound on her side and sat down on the bed beside her.

_Chouko looks so tired._ I said to myself. _She keeps pushing herself too hard. I wish she could learn to stop trying to give it everything she's got plus more and just hold back a little more._

I brushed her hair out of her face and caressed her cheek. Her body felt so cold, yet I knew she was still alive. The slow rise and fall of her chest was the only hint that she wasn't dead. I knew that what Kishu had said was right and that Chouko wouldn't have died so easily, but if she kept doing this then she would.

I stayed with her the rest of the afternoon and laid down next to her when night fell. I didn't want to leave her alone, even for a minute, until I was sure that she was alright.

Chouko POV

I slowly opened my eyes, but my vision was blurry. I could feel someone next to me and assumed it was Kishu. I wrapped my arm around his waist and pulled myself closer to him.

"Thank you so much… daisuke desu…" I whispered before falling back asleep. _daisuke desu: I love you_

The Next Morning

I woke up and noticed that Kishu wasn't beside me. _He must've gotten up already._ I told myself. That's when I noticed that my wound was bandaged. _He must've done that while I was passed out._

Just then, I noticed that I wasn't in my room, but I was in Ryou's room. The door to Ryou's bathroom opened and he walked out with only a towel around his waist. My face went scarlet and I turned around.

"How long have I been here?" I asked while I heard him get dressed.

"Since you were passed out." He replied, making me blush even more. "Kishu told me to look after you until he came back."

_So last night that wasn't Kishu... it was Ryou?!?! Holy shit! That means I slept with my uncle's boss!! CRAP! This so is not good! What if Kishu finds out?! I'm dead!!_

Ryou sat down on the bed next to me and I couldn't help but look up at him. He looked so kind and gentle, which was different from when I first met him. Before, he was kind, but arrogant and stubborn. The glint in his eyes had softened, and he seemed to be a whole new person.

"Chouko, there's something I want to tell you." Ryou said. "Something… important,"

My heart started beating fast. "W-What is it Ryou?" I asked nervously.

"Well, when you had died before… I locked myself up in my room because I regretted not being able to tell you something." He began nervously. "But when I knew that you were back… it made me a little happier, because now I can tell you how I really feel."

"Ryou, stop, I know what you're going to say and I—"

"I love you Chouko!" he said.

Ryou took my hand in his, making my heart beat even faster. I tried to pull my hand away, but his grip was too strong.

"Just hear me out Chouko, please." He begged. I stopped struggling and sighed. "I always thought of you as a little sister when you first came here, but then, the farther away from me you got, the more I felt in love with you. I knew you had chosen Kishu, but I wanted you to at least give me a chance."

I looked into his ocean blue eyes and my heart slowed down. I didn't want Ryou to think that I hated him, but I also didn't want to betray Kishu. _I guess if I give him one chance, it wouldn't count as betraying Kishu._ I said to myself.

"Alright, Ryou, I'll give you a chance." I said, making his eyes brighten. "But only one chance, you got it? I'm still loyal to Kishu."

"One chance is all I need." Ryou replied. "Come on, let's go outside today."

He led me outside and we walked around the park for a while. It felt a little awkward to be alone with Ryou like this, but I had promised to give him a chance. We sat underneath a tree and Ryou put his arm around me. I knew that Kishu wasn't nearby, so I decided to just go along with it and laid my head down on Ryou's shoulder.

"You know, this is actually kind of nice. Just being able to be alone for a while with no interruptions…" I sighed.

"Yeah, kind of makes you want to… fall in love, doesn't it?"

"Yeah… fall in love…"

And before I knew it, Ryou's lips met mine and we kissed. I don't know how long our kiss lasted, but it seemed like forever. I never wanted it to end… he was an even better kisser than Kishu was, but I'd never tell Kishu that. giggle

The next thing I knew, we were heading back to the café. Ryou was carrying me bridal style in his arms all the way up to his room. While we passed through the café, everyone stared at us. Since there weren't any customers, it wasn't very awkward, but I still turned a dark scarlet.

"Um… Chouko, why is Ryou carrying you in his arms like you're his girlfriend?" Pudding asked. Ichigo had convinced everyone except Keiichiro that I was back apparently.

"Oh, well, I, uh… I sprained my ankle! That's it; I tripped and sprained my ankle, so Ryou's just carrying me back up to my room. Isn't that right, Ryou?" I said.

"Exactly!" Ryou added. "So if you'll excuse us…"

He carried me all the way up to his room and set me down on his bed.

"That was a close one." I sighed. "They almost found out!"

"Yeah, but it's a good thing Ichigo is so stupid." Ryou said.

Ichigo: _For some reason I feel as though I want to punch Ryou tomorrow for something..._

"Anyway, thanks for hanging out with me today." He said. "I mean, I know you said that you're already committed to Kishu and everything, but thanks for giving me a chance."

"No problem. I actually had fun on our date." I said giggling.

"Oh, _really_? Well then… you want to continue from where we left off?"

He grabbed my chin and bent in closer to me, making my face turn red.

"Oh, well, I think we've done enough for right no—mmmmm"

Later that Night

I was lying beside Ryou, not able to sleep. I kept thinking about why Kishu would've left me here instead of taking me with him… but none of them ever made sense.

"_SHUT UP!" Kishu yelled. I froze, stunned by his words. In all the time we'd been together, I'd never seen him yell before… at least, not at me. "Get a hold of yourself Chou! This isn't like you… you've never been so… so cold before. What's happening to you?"_ what Kishu said kept echoing in my mind as I tried to sleep. What he said bothered me that even if I fell asleep I would only have nightmares.

_What was Kishu talking about? Have I really changed? Maybe returning to the realm of the living was the wrong thing to do. Oh mom, if only I could talk to you! You always know what to say..._

I closed my eyes and tried to go to sleep. I was standing on a bridge over a river with a waterfall only feet away. I was wearing a long white dress and a white ribbon that tied my hair up in a high ponytail, but I was standing on the bridge barefoot. The full moon reflected on the water and it started snowing.

I twig snapped behind me and I turned around to see a figure in the trees at the edge of the lake.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're here!" I heard myself say. "I was starting to think that you wouldn't show up."

"Why wouldn't I show up?" the voice said. It was soft, so I couldn't tell who it was. "You asked me to meet you here and I promised to come. I told you that I never break my promises."

I smiled as the figure walked closer and stood at the edge of the bridge. Just then, a sphere of light flew from behind me and hit the ground where the figure was standing. They flew backwards and the bridge began to wobble. It was becoming unstable since one of its bases had just gotten blasted into pieces. I grabbed onto the edge of the bridge for dear life.

"I warned you what would happen, didn't I?" another unrecognizable voice said. "I told you what would happen if you interfered with us?"

"I didn't do anything!" the figure said walking toward the place where the bridge had been destroyed. "Chouko, you've got to get off the bridge before it collapses."

The person held out their hand and I slowly walked toward them, trying not to lose my balance and fall off. The bridge had taken so much damage that it was rocking back and forth. I grabbed onto the side, trying no to fall off, but I slipped and lost my balance. I screamed as I fell over the side of the bridge and into the icy-cold water below.

All of a sudden, I was surrounded by clouds. I wasn't in the river floating down toward the waterfall anymore… but where _was_ I?

"Chouko…" came a familiar voice. A moment later my mother appeared in front of me.

"Mother? What are you doing here?" I asked.

"You had said that you wanted to see me, didn't you?" she asked.

"Oh, right! Well, uh, ever since I returned to the realm of the living, everything's gotten complicated!" I began. "I want to be with Kishu, but now I think I'm in love with Ryou, but I had already told Kishu that I was his, but I really, _really_ like Ryou and… and…"

"It's okay, I understand." My mother said, placing her hand on my shoulder. "But there's nothing I can do to help you."

"Why not? Can't you just tell me who I should be with?!" I begged.

"I'm sorry dear, but this one you're going to have to figure out on your own. If I keep telling you what to do, you'll never be able to stand on your own two feet." She caressed my cheek. "But I will tell you this: follow your heart instead of your mind, and remember that true love will conquer anything."

My mother slowly started to fade away. "NO! Don't go yet! Stay with me longer!" I begged, but then I heard someone calling my name.

"Chouko… Chouko!"

My eyes shot open to see Ryou bending over me looking concerned. I was covered in sweat and breathing heavily, my heart beating extremely fast. I sat up and grabbed my head.

"You were yelling in your sleep, I didn't know what else to do." Ryou said.

"It's okay Ryou, I understand." I said, trying to clear my head. "I just had a nightmare, that's all."

"Well, it's morning anyway, so we'd better get ready for work today." He said getting up.

"You're right." I said heading toward the door.

I didn't know how to tell Ryou what I had dreamed about. _What if he thought I was weird? Then he wouldn't like me anymore! But I really like him... and Kishu! Oh, I'm so dead! I can't decide who to stay loyal to._

I opened the door and ran face to face with the last person I'd have expected to see at the café this early.

"Oh, Chouko… I didn't know that you were…" it was Ichigo.


End file.
